Fall is here and that means that winter is just around the corner. In the portable restroom industry that means winter service charges. We often have our customers inquire about winter service charges. They often ask what a winter service charge is, why they need it and when the charges take affect.The following will answer all of these questions, and give you some context behind your winter restroom service charge.
What is a Winter Portable Restroom Service Charge?
A winter service charge is an additional charge made on portable restroom rentals that starts around late fall and is in affect until spring. This charge is automatically added to all of On Site’s portable restroom rentals charges, because of the colder temperatures that occur at this time.
The revenue from this service charge goes to pay for the extra anti-freezing solution that has to be put into the portable restroom deodorizer of the portable restroom (the blue liquid in the tank). The deodorizer in the portable restroom, and the waste stored inside, freezes just like any other liquid would when the temperatures drop below freezing, and that is why the charge is required on all portable restroom rentals and fresh flush mobile office setups.
Why Do I Need the Winter Service Charge?
As was stated in the previous paragraph, the winter service charge is required because the contents of the tank will freeze when the temperature drops below freezing. You may not think it’s a big deal, but if the contents of your portable restroom tanks freeze it actually creates a lot of problems for your portable restroom provider.
Once liquid in the portable restroom freeze, your service technician can no longer clean or service the restroom. Solid frozen contents are impossible to pump out of the portable restroom, so they will have to be thawed out before they can be cleaned.
Letting the contents of your portable restrooms freeze can also damage the holding tank of the portable restroom. We’ve all left a bottle of water or soda in the freezer and forgotten about it, right? So you know that when you remove the bottle from the freezer, the contents expand and this expansion can crack or warp the bottle. The same thing can happen to the tank of the portable restroom when the contents eventually thaw out. The tank can be warped or cracked and render them un-useable in the future.
When Does the Winter Service Charge Take Affect?
The timing of the winter service charge can vary from year to year depending on the weather patterns of the area. For our Minnesota customers, your winter service charge usually begins around early November and lasts through March. The timing for the winter service charge will most likely be much later for our St. Louis customers. Since weather ranges from year to year though, the charge could start earlier in the year or last longer.
Remember that even though the temperatures may be warmer during the day, the winter service charge also takes into account the evening low temperatures. If the temperatures are dropping below freezing in the evenings, your portable restroom provider could start the winter service charges to ensure that the restroom contents aren’t freezing overnight.
The portable restroom winter service charge is almost unavoidable in the harsh Midwest winters, but there is good reasoning behind it. The charge mainly covers the cost of the anti-freezing solution that are put into the portable restroom’s deodorizer. Winter service charges are important because they prevent damage to the restroom and ensure that your portable restroom service technician can service the restroom correctly. And finally, your winter service charge will usually start around November and last through March, but the weather has a large impact on when the winter service charge will take affect.
On Site Companies is a portable restrooms and luxury restroom trailer rental company that can provide you with rental equipment at any of our five branches. We are located in St. Paul, Rochester and Mankato Minnesota, St. Louis Missouri and Omaha Nebraska. If you have any further questions about portable restroom rentals, or if you would like to book equipment rentals, you can call us at 1.800.210.8407 or email us at sales@onsiteco.com
